Publication Date
1989
Description
Use of indigestible plant constituents as internal markers as opposed to fecal index methods and in vitro techniques, has the distinct advantage of measuring digestibility directly in vivo and in the pasture. Lignin and acid insoluble ash are the most frequently employed markers. Grass contaminated by soil renders the method using insoluble ash rather unreliable, while lignin as reported by Fahey and Jung (1983) also presents problems it is either partially digested or gives positive fecal recovery by binding of endogenous constituents of indeterminate nature. It would seem however that results obtained are directly related to analytical method used (Rodriguez, 1987). The aim of the trials described in this paper is to compare digestibility of organic matter of several fresh forages determined on penned animals either by total collection of feces or by the lignin ratio technique. In addition, the influence of stage of growth of grass, intake level and diet supplementation by concentrates on the rate of fecal recovery of lignin have been studied.
Citation
Thewis, A; Rodriguez, F; Francois, E; and Bartiaux-Thill, N, "Utilization of Lignin According to Christian as an Internal Marker for Assessing Digestibility of Temperate Grasses with or without Supplementation in Adult Rams" (2025). IGC Proceedings (1989-2023). 40.
https://uknowledge.uky.edu/igc/1989/session7/40
Included in
Agricultural Science Commons, Agronomy and Crop Sciences Commons, Plant Biology Commons, Plant Pathology Commons, Soil Science Commons, Weed Science Commons
Utilization of Lignin According to Christian as an Internal Marker for Assessing Digestibility of Temperate Grasses with or without Supplementation in Adult Rams
Use of indigestible plant constituents as internal markers as opposed to fecal index methods and in vitro techniques, has the distinct advantage of measuring digestibility directly in vivo and in the pasture. Lignin and acid insoluble ash are the most frequently employed markers. Grass contaminated by soil renders the method using insoluble ash rather unreliable, while lignin as reported by Fahey and Jung (1983) also presents problems it is either partially digested or gives positive fecal recovery by binding of endogenous constituents of indeterminate nature. It would seem however that results obtained are directly related to analytical method used (Rodriguez, 1987). The aim of the trials described in this paper is to compare digestibility of organic matter of several fresh forages determined on penned animals either by total collection of feces or by the lignin ratio technique. In addition, the influence of stage of growth of grass, intake level and diet supplementation by concentrates on the rate of fecal recovery of lignin have been studied.
